HIM
by KT-48
Summary: A short horror story about two friends who have a bumpy ride while travelling to and staying in a hotel on the rumoured anniversary of mysterious murders that happened there.


**HIM**

**It was twenty five years ago on a dark and foggy December night. Silence fellover the rough and winding lane that lead to the Old Oak Hotel. Then the silence was disturbed, by the terrifying sound of **_**him**_** and his rusty weapon. The sounds were unbearable and the howling of his victims could be heard faintly echoing around in the bitter coldness of the night. The hollow shots rang out frequently but each was more haunting than the last. At times it sounded like there was a small army firing in the Old Oak Lane, but it was only **_**him.**_** The story goes that he kills people regardless each year on his anniversary, waiting until the night that a soul from the Hotel will join him in the deep , fiery pits of Hell. The problem was that so far, all the murdered souls from the Old Oak hotel, all went to Heaven.**

**ADVERTISEMENT FOR THE NEW OAK HOTEL**

Matthew shivered in the car seat with his mouth wide open. "What the hell are we going there for? You maniac!" He looked annoyed, "I don't want to stay on the anniversary of a psycho killing and his suicide. It's depressing and beyond the boundaries of creepy. Ben glanced at Matt and laughed out loud and hard. Matt was still panicky and constantly fidgeting.

The car travelled down the rough and winding Lane that leads to the New Oak Hotel. It's name was changed after that foggy December night. "Look, it's only a story. I mean, yeah, something might have happened there but no one knows what. The story is only to attract attention. Anyway we are leaving early morning to get to the holiday camp, okay?"

"Look, you, I know you're my friend but I don't trust you, not even with..."

"your hamster, I know, I know. So you keep reminding me, but you really need to lighten up"

"Exactly, you know I don't trust you and yet you are taking me somewhere where people probably don't know what happened years ago because they all DIED! Anyways I bet it's something to do with him being stuck here, unable to cross over because of unfinished business" Matthew whined.

"Fine, fidget, scream, over analyse everything as normal. Just keep your superstitions to yourself. We paid for the room and we are staying there!"cried Ben becoming agitated. Neither of them spoke for a while after that. Silence filled the car.

The only sound was the car tyres running over the pebbles and dirt of the dark, winding lane. As the car drew nearer and nearer to the next tight bend a shadowy figure appeared in the road. Something was hanging by his side in his hand, and the only clearly visible features were his bulging eyes, and ragged hair under an old cap. His eyes stared straight at the oncoming car and the longer you looked at them the more you could imagine a cruel smirk of a smile spreading across his face.

The car came ever closer and both men froze in their seats, unable to move.

"Ben...Ben? He's not moving Ben!" Matt gasped. No reply came from Ben, but the car wasn't slowing down. The object in the figures hand caught the moonlight as the car neared him. A chill came over the whole lane as if death itself was present. It was a rusty old fashioned revolver.

The car carried on rolling down the dark and winding Lane with its driver too shocked to react. Both of them yelled in confusion and braced themselves for the impact of the car hitting the figure...but none came. The figure passed straight through the car, leaving a swirl of disturbing mist where it should have been.

The car rocked around the sharp corner and turned into the iron gates of the New Oak Hotel that towered over the dusty car park and framed the building as you passed through them. It was almost as if it were a photo waiting to be taken.

The car pulled over near the entrance to the dull and haunting Hotel, with the engine spluttering as the key was removed from the ignition. Ben staggered out of the car and moved to the boot of the little green car slowly from shock.

Matt, however was more shaken. He couldn't bring himself to move at first, or even take in the buildings appearance. He flinched and closed his eyes tightly as Ben shut the boot heavily and surprising him. This brought him round to reality just enough to drag himself out of the car and collect his suitcase. The two men stood looking up at their lodging place for the night. Vines slithered up the walls like snakes, the curtains were as black as a crow and all drawn tight along the windows. The door frame was a deep red with rotting edges. The flowerbeds were untidy and mostly dead.

"Well now we know why it was so cheap," Ben remarked. Matt glared at him as he trudged solemnly up the leaf-covered steps and rung the thick rope doorbell. The concierge answered and gave the two men a jagged key to their room which was on the first floor.

The bed sheets were rough and neither Ben nor Matt could fully relax that night. The ghostly figure of the man and his revolver was constantly at the back of their minds. The tension in room seventeen grew and became unbearable. And finally as Matt climed into bed he couldn't help but say "Now do you believe?"

Ben just ignored him totally and continued to read his book. "maniac" Matt mumbled a few minutes later as he rolled over in bed.

Suddenly the electric lights flickered and a piercing scream was carried through the air to their door. Matt sat bolt upright and stared at the door with a petrified look upon his plae face. Ben just looked up from his book momentarily and then continued as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

"Ben?"Matt whispered "Ben? Did you just hear that?"

"What?"

"The scream"

"It was a TV or something, from up stairs"

"But, it was so..."

"Shut up, I am trying to read"

BANG!

"BEN?" Matt shouted.

"Oh, my god, that was a gun, it must be him come back from the dead!"Ben chirped.

"You...you..."

"Look if you're that bothered I will go out and look, but it's nothing you big girls blouse"

"Fine!"

So with that Ben slouched out of the room and shut the door behind him. Matt was left alone in the silent room. Time passed like a snail..crawling by as it does when knots form in your stomach. Sweat beads began to from on Matt's brow. What seemed like minutes passed but in reality it was only seconds. Ben's slippers could be heard shuffling along the floor in the corridor outside, and his watch on the table sounded louder and louder as it ticked away drilling into Matt's skull. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.

...

BANG!

Matt flung himself against the door to stop anyone or anything that might be heading towards him from the other side. He heard a clink and then Ben's watch stopped ticking and the silence was worse than the noise. Matt couldn't stand it. He slowly reached for the handle of the door, turning it until it clicked. A spine chilling wind gushed through the door as he gently pushed on the door to open it gradually. The floorboards creaked as he crept through the doorway.

Another BANG! Another clink.

His heart began to pound, he looked at the floor as something dull and metal caught his eye. A small narrow rusty cylinder lay on the floor. Matt didn't know what it was so he stepped over it and continued towards the sounds. His body was shaking uncontrollably and sweat now poured down his face as he neared the corner. He peered around and stepped out, falling to the floor with horror and shock. Lying in front of him was Ben, bleeding from the chest and soaking the floor.

Stood over him was a tall figure with ragged clothing and wide flat face. Matt recognised the bulging eyes first. A familiarly horrifying grin was spread across the face from the lane. The shadow, Matt looked down at his hand and his heart jumped when he saw the revolver hanging by his side.

Now he realised the cylinders were empty gun barrels. He found the courage to speak from his anger and took a stand for the first time in his life for Ben. "but...you're...on the lane...you must be..."

"DEAD!" he yelled, in a hoarse voice.

"Why? Why kill everyone when you're already dead! You don't know any of us!" He rose from his knees to look _Him_ in the eye.

The ghost responded by slowly raising his revolver, with the smile returning to his face. This time it didn't look cruel, it looked vaguely hopeful.

"Why? Tell ME!" Matt demanded desperately.

At Matt's willingness to understand the ghost lowered his weapon again, and spoke. "I am miserable, and alone as I was in life. I vowed I would not be alone for eternity."

"What went wrong?"

"I was murdered in the lane outside. But I killed my murderer in my last moments as he stole my life from me."

Matt waited for_ Him_ to speak again and thought frantically about how he could help prevent this from happening again. He looked sadly at Ben and his fingers twitched...he was still alive.

"I'm bound to earth until I can fulfil my vow. But I have taken lives...I am not pure or good. I am bound for a dark place, a place where nobody else who has died here will go."

Matt frowned, and then his eyes widened and his heart sunk, "...Hell"

The ghost nodded, and so did Matt. He raised his revolver again, "Wait...Think about it. If you are going to kill me anyway I might as well help you fulfil your vow" Matt put out his hand and the ghost placed the revolver in it. It burned against his skin and had a shimmery outline like that of it's owner.

Looking down at Ben, Matt's heart tore into pieces and he wretched. Shaking with renewed fear, confusion and shock at himself he shut his eyes and raised the gun...aiming it at Ben! The sound ripped into Matt's soul and he dropped the weapon on the ground, moving his hands to clench his stomach. He blinked quickly and glanced for a second at Ben's hand. It wasn't moving anymore.

The ghost picked up his weapon, and for the final time he raised it, aiming at the newly blackened heart of Matt. His friend to be. The last sound that echoed through those halls and down the dark winding lane cheated a man out of life, and freed a wondering lost soul from the isolation of death.

...BANG!


End file.
